Rick Roepke

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Rick Roepke Counselor, Leader, Author, Speaker.

With 30+ years in the counseling field Rick Roepke has developed a keen sense of discernment and skill in helping people solve problems. For anyone who has ever interacted with Dr. Rick Roepke it soon becomes apparent that he has a pretty amazing sense of humor along with a wise and compassionate temperament. With 30+ years in the counseling field he has developed a keen sense of discernment and skill in helping people solve problems:

‱ Leadership & Culture
‱ Executive Coaching
‱ Emotional Intelligence
‱ Speaker and Author
‱ Certified Cognitive Behavioral Therapist

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTIONWhen life gets hard, our minds can fill in the blanks pretty quickly.We assume the worst.We decide no...
10/02/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTION

When life gets hard, our minds can fill in the blanks pretty quickly.

We assume the worst.
We decide nothing will change.
We use words like always and never.
And before long, one difficult moment starts to feel like the whole story.

This week we’ve been talking about making room for a more accurate perspective without pretending everything is fine.

So this week’s question is:

When life gets hard, what is hardest for you?

Not assuming the worst?
Leaving room for things to improve?
Avoiding “always” and “never”?
Remembering this isn’t the whole story?

Or something else?

—Rick & Kathy

09/30/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE CONVERSATION | The Story We Tell About What’s Happening

Sometimes the words we choose reveal the story we’ve already started telling ourselves.

“This always happens.”
“Nothing ever works out.”
“I can’t do this.”

Those phrases can make a hard moment feel permanent.

What if, instead of deciding how the story ends, we left a little room for what we don’t know yet?

“This is hard right now.”
“What I’ve tried so far hasn’t worked.”
“I’m still figuring out what to do next.”

That isn’t denial.

It’s making room for truth without giving hopelessness the final word.

Sometimes changing the words doesn’t change what you’re walking through.

But it can change the story you’re telling yourself while you walk through it.

đŸ”„ We’ll see you around the campfire.

—Rick & Kathy

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE LESSONThe words we use about a hard situation matter.Not because saying the “right” thing magically changes w...
09/28/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE LESSON

The words we use about a hard situation matter.

Not because saying the “right” thing magically changes what’s happening.

Sometimes life really is difficult.

Sometimes we’re confused.
Sometimes we’re disappointed.
Sometimes we don’t know what comes next.

But there’s a difference between saying:

“This is hard.”

and:

“Everything is falling apart.”

There’s a difference between:

“I don’t know what to do yet.”

and:

“I’ll never figure this out.”

One describes the difficulty.

The other can make the difficulty feel bigger, more permanent, and more hopeless than it actually is.

Paul gives us a beautiful example of holding both truth and hope at the same time:

“We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair.”
— 2 Corinthians 4:8

Hard pressed? Yes.
Crushed? No.

Perplexed? Yes.
In despair? No.

Faith doesn’t require us to deny what’s hard.

It gives us room to say:

“This is difficult — but this is not the whole story.”

Your words may not change the situation.

But they can change how you walk through it.

—Rick

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTIONWhen emotions run high, even a simple conversation can get complicated fast.Some of us struggle to li...
09/25/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTION

When emotions run high, even a simple conversation can get complicated fast.

Some of us struggle to listen without planning our response.

Some say things we regret.

Some have a hard time putting feelings into words.

And some of us reach for those dangerous little words like always and never. 😅

So this week’s question is:

When you’re upset with someone, which part is hardest for you?

We’d love to hear what tends to trip you up.

—Rick & Kathy

09/23/2026

đŸŽ„ CAMPFIRE CONVERSATION | Do You Want to Be Right—or Stay Connected?

Hard conversations aren’t the problem.

The real challenge is learning how to be honest without turning honesty into a weapon.

When we’re hurt, frustrated, or defensive, it’s easy to reach for generalizations like:

always
never
everyone

And suddenly the conversation stops being about the issue and starts becoming about defending ourselves.

Before you say the next thing, it may help to ask:

“What do I want these words to accomplish?”

Understanding?
Repair?
A solution?

Or simply the satisfaction of being right?

Sometimes slowing down long enough to choose our words is one of the most loving things we can do.

Because the goal isn’t to avoid hard conversations.

It’s to protect the connection while we work through the problem.

đŸ”„ We’ll see you around the campfire.

—Rick & Kathy

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE LESSONWords can do more than communicate what we think.They can strengthen a relationship—or wound it.Some of...
09/21/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE LESSON

Words can do more than communicate what we think.

They can strengthen a relationship—or wound it.

Some of the most damaging things we say are spoken when we’re hurt, angry, defensive, or determined to prove a point.

And being honest doesn’t give us permission to be careless.

You can tell the truth without using the truth as a weapon.

There’s a difference between saying:

“That hurt me.”

and:

“You never care about how I feel.”

One describes an experience.

The other attacks the person.

James gives us a simple but challenging reminder:

“Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry.”
—James 1:19

Sometimes protecting a relationship means slowing down long enough to ask:

“Am I trying to communicate—or am I trying to win?”

Because once words are spoken, we can apologize for them.

But we can’t make the other person unhear them.

Speak in a way that protects the relationship, not just your position.

—Rick

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTIONWhen life gets difficult, the words we use can make the situation feel even heavier.Always.Never.Ever...
09/18/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTION

When life gets difficult, the words we use can make the situation feel even heavier.

Always.
Never.
Everything.
Nothing.
Can’t.

Sometimes one little word can turn a hard moment into what feels like a permanent story.

So this week we’re curious:

Which word tends to sneak into your thinking when life gets difficult?

—Rick & Kathy

09/16/2026

đŸŽ„ CAMPFIRE CONVERSATION | Speaking Truth to Yourself

The words we use to describe a hard season matter.

There’s a difference between saying:

“Everything is falling apart.”

and:

“This is really hard, and I don’t know what happens next.”

Both acknowledge the struggle.

But one leaves room for the possibility that this moment is not the whole story.

Sometimes changing our words doesn’t change what we’re walking through.

But it can change the story we’re telling ourselves while we walk through it.

đŸ”„ We’ll see you around the campfire.

—Rick & Kathy

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE LESSONThere is a conversation you carry with you everywhere you go.The one happening inside your own mind.I a...
09/14/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE LESSON

There is a conversation you carry with you everywhere you go.

The one happening inside your own mind.

I always mess things up.
I’m not good enough.
I should be further along by now.
I’ll never change.

We may say those things almost automatically—but hearing them repeatedly can shape how we see ourselves.

That doesn’t mean replacing every difficult thought with something artificially positive.

It means learning to speak to ourselves with truth.

Maybe instead of “I’ll never change,” it becomes:

“I’m still growing.”

Instead of “I failed, so I’m a failure,”:

“I made a mistake. I can learn from it.”

And instead of “I can’t handle this,”:

“I don’t know how this will turn out, but I can take the next right step.”

Scripture reminds us:

“Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right
think about such things.”
—Philippians 4:8

The goal isn’t positive thinking.

It’s truthful thinking.

—Rick

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTIONSometimes guilt shows up even when we haven’t actually done anything wrong.We feel guilty for saying ...
09/11/2026

đŸ”„ CAMPFIRE QUESTION

Sometimes guilt shows up even when we haven’t actually done anything wrong.

We feel guilty for saying no.
For setting a boundary.
For disappointing someone.
For taking time for ourselves.
Or because we couldn’t fix a problem that was never ours to fix.

This week we’ve been talking about the difference between healthy guilt and false guilt—and learning to recognize when we’re carrying responsibility that doesn’t belong to us.

So this week’s question is:

What are you most likely to feel guilty about—even when you haven’t done anything wrong?

đŸ”„ We’d love to hear your thoughts.

—Rick & Kathy

Address

1911 Scottsville Road
Bowling Green, KY
42104

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

(270) 746-0283

Website

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